Alexithymia and Insecure Attachment among Male Intimate Partner Violence Aggressors in the Dominican Republic.

Luis Vergés-Báez,Rafael García-Álvarez,David Lozano-Paniagua,Mar Requena-Mullor,Jessica García-González,Raquel Alarcón-Rodríguez

doi:10.3390/healthcare9121626

Abstract

The complexity of intimate partner violence and the impossibility of understanding it from single factors have been studied from different biological, psychological, and socio-cultural factors. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 187 men involved in legal proceedings for problems of violence in their intimate partner relationships in the Dominican Republic in order to explore whether insecure attachment represents a risk factor for alexithymia in men with violent behaviors. The attachment style was determinate by the Casullo and Fernández-Liporace Attachment Styles Scale, and alexithymia was assayed using the Latin American Consensual Toronto Alexithymia Scale (LAC TAS-20), a modification of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). Chi-square test and multiple binary logistic regression analysis were performed to explore the phenomena of alexithymia and attachment styles in the context of a confinement center for male intimate partner offenders in the Dominican Republic. The results showed that insecure attachment represents a risk factor for alexithymia, being highest for avoidant attachment in the population studied. The results also highlight the influence of other factors such as education and maternal–familial relationships as a factor risk for alexithymia.

Highlights

Intimate partner violence (IPV), the most common form of violence that women experience globally, is an act of violence committed by a male intimate partner or ex-partner that results in either physical, sexual, or psychological harm directed towards females [1]
Both alexithymia and insecure attachment could be related to the mechanism that explains certain violent behavior in intimate relationships and that it could be related to emotional factors, it is not completely clear
This relationship allows us to propose the evaluation of alexithymia and personal attachment style as a therapeutic complement for the assessment of the male perpetrator’s profile that will support proposal rehabilitation plans adjusted to each profile

Summary

Introduction

Intimate partner violence (IPV), the most common form of violence that women experience globally, is an act of violence committed by a male intimate partner or ex-partner that results in either physical, sexual, or psychological harm directed towards females [1]. The violent behavior within the partner has a multi-causal origin and has multiple associated risk factors. This multifactorial makes the study of these risk factors a difficult task [5]. According to the ecological theory of Heise, the IPV should be viewed as a multifactorial interaction among personal, situational and sociocultural factors [6]. Both sexes are at risk of homicide from IPV, men are more likely than women to act violently in order to induce fear, domination, and control [7]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion